Tuesday, May 23, 2017

According to data from the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), it appears that the LeFevre 1-17 (gas well), with a total vertical depth of 7,075 feet was drilled in 1982 by Martin Exploration with the GPS location of 40.139756 - 105.143321 and facility ID #206626.

This location indicates that the abandoned well is in the backyard of a Longmont, Colorado resident located at: 3464 Larkspur Drive.

Abandoned gas well appears to be in home owner's back-yard (bottom left) and an abandoned liquid waste evaporation pit in another home owner's yard (3465 Larkspur Drive)

The LeFevre 1-17 oil and gas well-casing is thirty four years old, and according a comprehensive study conducted by Schlumberger Oil and Gas, 'uncontrolled migration of hydrocarbons to the surface has been a challenge to the oil and gas industry.'

Oil and Gas Operator 'Couldn't Find Well' - that seems to be a problem

The Schlumberger well-casing failure study shows that 'gas migration, also called annular flow, can lead to sustained casing pressure (SCP), which can be characterized as the development of annular pressure at the surface that can be bled to zero, but then builds again.' This is an indication of an unstable zonal isolation below ground. Imagine an explosive gas hiccup that could occur at any moment without warning.

Sustained casing pressure of plugged and abandoned wells are a significant problem affecting many wells around the world and the age of the the well-casing has a direct correlation to failure rates. Sixty percent of all well-casing studied that were 28 years old had experienced fluid/gas migrations or (SCP).

All well-casings fail over time and the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, (COGCC), and Governor John Hickenlooper know the inherent dangers they are forcing on the public, and should never allow the development of homes on-top or even near these potential catastrophic hazards.

Their actions are reckless endangerment at the highest level, and the home owners are innocently unaware of the willful acts of those involved that continue to maximize profit at the peril of citizens.

Sadly, last month in Firestone, a fatal house explosion killed two men by an explosion caused by a flow-line seeping methane into the basement of the home that ignited. This tragedy could have been prevented, and all future catastrophes can be prevented if the state acts in a manner consistent with public health, safety and environment with regards to oil and gas development.

If, according to the oil and gas giant Schlumberger, 60% of all well casings that are 28 years old fail and allow gases and liquids to migrate outwards, potentially into homes, how many more incidents like Firestone will occur and is your home next?

Application to Permit to Drill

LIQUID WASTE EVAPORATION PIT DATA - USED BY OIL AND GAS OPERATOR

Oil and gas evaporation pits are used by the industry to dump their liquid industrial waste fluids. An evaporation pit is created by digging a hole into the earth and for liquid waste disposal through evaporation.

Most of the evaporation pits were crude, unlined (earthen) holes in the ground where much of the heavy chemicals sank to the bottom and leached into the ground while the lighter chemicals evaporated into the airspace above.

What a criminal way to dispose of toxic byproducts. The industry has always found ways of making money at the expense of public health, safety and environment.

CLICK MAP TO ENLARGE

Evaporation pits in use and then back-filled (covered up) Click Image

The questions are: Do you have a well under or near your home? Do you have a right to know if your home was developed in an area with abandoned oil and gas wells? Should the state be liable for allowing your home to be build on-top or near an abandoned oil and gas well?

Contact me and I'll let you know if you have an abandoned oil and gas well or evaporation pit under or near your home.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

To be delivered to The Colorado State House, The Colorado State Senate, and Governor John Hickenlooper

An abandoned gas line that had never been disconnected from a nearby well was at the root of a deadly home explosion in Firestone, CO on April 17. Two people died in the gas explosion and another in critical condition.

This tragedy could have been prevented. The lives of Colorado citizens and the environment are still in imminent and grave danger due to you allowing the development and operation of oil and gas wells in occupied neighborhoods, elementary schools, playgrounds, public spaces, rivers, hospitals all across Colorado.

1. SHUTTING DOWN ALL OIL AND GAS WELLS IN ALL RESIDENTIAL AREAS AND OUTLYING AREAS IN THE STATE OF COLORADO. AN IMMEDIATE INJUNCTION SHOULD BE PLACED ON ALL OIL AND GAS ACTIVITY.

2. MECHANICAL INTEGRITY TESTS BE CONDUCTED IMMEDIATELY ON ALL ACTIVE AND ABANDONED OIL AND GAS WELLS IN COLORADO.

3. CLOSURE OF THE 'SETBACK LOOPHOLE.' In 2012 I discovered a Setback Loophole and introduced a bill to close it – but the unfortunately, the bill died. COGCC Rule 602(d) states: “Existing wells are exempt from the provisions of these regulations as they relate to the location of the well.” This Setback Loophole allows any ‘completed’ well to be re-entered and re-drilled regardless of proximity to a structure. And home developers are exempt from any state setbacks from oil and gas operations. This appears to be reckless endangerment and must cease and desist immediately.

4. IMPLEMENTING A ‘REVERSE SETBACK’ for commercial developers that is based on good science health studies and current failure data to ascertain a distance from oil and gas wells that provides public health, safety and welfare and environment.

5. 'CLOSURE OF THE 'WAIVER LOOPHOLE' The ‘Waiver Loophole’ allows any operator to not abide by any rule or regulation regarding oil and gas development and operations that causes them ‘undue financial burden.’With a single sentence from the oil and gas industry that states “abiding by this rule will cause XYZ operator and its operations undue financial burden” the industry then does not have to abide by the rule or pay its expense to do so, and is then waived by a simple signature of COGCC Director Matt Lepore.

6. THE COGCC PLACE AN IMMEDIATE HALT ON THE ISSUANCE OF PERMITS not yet approved or applied for as of the March 23 Martinez verdict, and to begin a balanced process that provided public healthy, safety and environment.

7. WE DEMAND OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS TO SAFETY

8. LOCATION AND ID OF ABANDONED WELS AND FLOW-LINES UNDER OR NEAR COLORADO CITIZEN'S HOME AND THE CITIZEN'S SHOULD BE NOTIFIED IMMEDIATELY OF WELL LOCATIONS.

9. ALL 60,000+ MILES OF FLOW-LINES IN COLORADO BE INSPECTED IMMEDIATELY

o 17.5% of all fracking industry spills had already caused ground water contamination in a statewide study.

o 40% of spills contaminated groundwater in Weld County, where Firestone is located. My studies, were confirmed accurate three years later by Matt Lepore, Director of the COGCC. If any company had contaminated groundwater at a 40% rate they would no doubt be shut down

On June 12, 2012 I attended a fracking study session in Loveland, Co where I told the Mayor, planning and zoning commission they could create their own setbacks from fracking industry oil and gas wells. I told them they should locate every active and abandoned well in their city and outlying county and develop new homes away from existing wells in order to protect public health, safety and welfare. I recently contacted the city of Loveland to acquire the recording of said presentation, and they said that they 'purged it from their system.' It no longer exists.

In 2011 the COGCC requested emergency funding in Florence, CO for explosive levels of methane seeping into more than a dozen homes from an abandoned well more than 1,000’ away. The homes had to be immediately evacuated. For perspective, the home in Firestone was 170’ away from an abandoned well.

There are COGCC documents that illustrate numerous homes in Colorado are build on top of abandoned oil and gas wells and in a few cases, the home exploded due to methane seepage into the basements. One person was taken to the burn center.

These are some of the imposed dangers you have placed upon us Governor John Hickenlooper, and it is time to cease and desist what appears to be reckless endangerment of Colorado citizens. In addition, commercial developers can develop closer to oil and gas wells than the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commissions’ (COGCC) setbacks allow.

I warned the Governor and COGCC that an incident like Firestone would happen. He ignored me. He ignored the COGCC's own failures and in doing so, he failed to prevent the Firestone catastrophe from happening. There is no doubt a catastrophic tragedy like Firestone or worse, will happen again if the State of Colorado does not act immediately to pass statewide laws that protect the “civil rights to safety” of Colorado citizens and that of the environment and not favor the oil and gas industry. LINK TO SIGN PETITION

Monday, May 1, 2017

What can I say that I haven't already said for the last seven years of
my life to you, other commissioners, city councils, senators, governors, and
hundreds of thousands of Coloradans, media everywhere and the entire United
States? I have even told the fracking industry the facts on their oil and gas state
of failures.

I will now re-iterate.

I warned everyone an incident like Firestone would happen. The
probability exists that an oil and gas related catastrophe in residential
neighborhoods will happen when industry infrastructure and realistic setbacks
are not created. There is no doubt a
catastrophic tragedy will happen if Boulder County does not act immediately to
pass local laws that protect the “civil rights to safety” of Boulder County
citizens and that of the environment and
not favor the oil and gas industry.

Firestone, Colorado home exploded in fireball. Two men died.

I have probably reviewed more than a half million Colorado Oil and Gas
documents, I have seen documents that illustrate explosive levels of methane
and other gases seeping into dozens of homes that had to be evacuated by the
COGCC. I have seen documents that show how the Laramie Fox-Hills Aquifer was
contaminated with methane and toluene (a fracking fluid) by a well casing leak.
Private water wells all over the state have been contaminated by oil and gas
operations. Methane and fluid migrations can travel over one mile in distance.

I have seen thousands of spill reports that showed 17.5% of all
fracking industry spills had already caused ground water contamination in a
statewide study. And a staggering 40% of
spills contaminated groundwater in Weld County, where Firestone is located. My
studies, which are nothing more than the COGCC’s own documents, were confirmed
accurate three years later by Matt Lepore, Director of the COGCC. If any
company had contaminated groundwater at a 40% rate they would no doubt be shut
down.

I have reviewed documents that illustrate numerous homes in Colorado
are build right on top of abandoned oil and gas wells and in a few cases, the
home exploded due to methane seepage into the basements. One person was taken to the burn center.

In 2011 the COGCC requested emergency funding in Florence, CO for
explosive levels of methane seeping into more than a dozen homes from an
abandoned well more than 1,000’ away. The homes had to be immediately
evacuated. For perspective, the home in
Firestone was 170’ away from an abandoned well.

According to a Cornell University Study: 60% of well-bores fail after
20 years. Meaning; the structural integrity of wellbores degrade, corrode,
crack and fall apart after twenty years.

There are six abandoned wells in Boulder City proper that are over 80
years old that appear to be in homeowner’s backyards or underneath or near
occupied homes. There are nearly one
dozen other abandoned wells that exist in the surrounding areas of the City of
Boulder.

There is an 80+ year old abandoned well under Valmont reservoir and two
abandoned wells the same age on the beaches of the Boulder Reservoir where,
>300,000 people visit annually. There is also an abandoned oil and gas well
from the 1930’s less than 200’ feet from Creekside Elementary School. Nearly
the same distance as the well in Firestone.

BOULDER, COLORADO

On June 12, 2012 I attended a fracking study session in Loveland, Co where
I told the Mayor, planning and zoning commission they could create their own
setbacks from fracking industry oil and gas wells. I told them they should locate every active
and abandoned well in their city and outlining county and develop new homes
away from existing wells in order to protect public health, safety and welfare.

In 2012 I discovered a Setback Loophole and introduced a bill to close
it – but the unfortunately, the bill died. COGCC Rule 602(d) states: “Existing wells
are exempt from the provisions of these regulations as they relate to the
location of the well.” This Setback Loophole allows any ‘completed’ well to be
re-entered and re-drilled regardless of proximity to a structure. And home
developers are exempt from any state setbacks from oil and gas operations. This
appears to be reckless endangerment and must cease and desist immediately.

August 2012 I gave a formal presentation to the COGCC entitled “The
Failures of the State of Colorado to Prevent or Mitigate Adverse Impacts to its
Citizens and the Environment.” LINK

The grand loophole of all exists in the COGCC Rules and Regulations.
The entirety of the COGCC’s regulations are nothing more than worthless words
due to a ‘Waiver Loophole’ that allows any operator to not abide by any rule or
regulation regarding oil and gas development and operations that causes them
‘undue financial burden.’

With a single sentence from the oil and gas industry that states
“abiding by this rule will cause XYZ Operator and its operations undue
financial burden” the industry then does not have to abide by the rule or pay
its expense to do so, and is then waived by a simple signature of COGCC Director Matt Lepore. This is the 'Comprehensive Waiver
Loophole.'

I lived in Firestone. It was not only a horrific inspiration to launch
a full state-wide resistance against the unregulated fracking industry and the
State agencies that gave them right of way over public health safety and
environment, but it forced me to move to a place that did not have any real
immediate danger. I could not protect myself from the inherent dangers of the
fracking industry.

FIRESTONE, CO - each red dot = +|- 52 active wells

Our civil rights to safety have been stripped from us by federal
exemptions and enforced by state supremacy that is arbitrary and capricious, which
appears to recklessly endanger public health safety and environment.

As I've said for years now, this is not an anti-fracking issue, it's a
civil rights issue and every single human has the constitutional right to live
without obstruction to safety. Facts don’t lie, the oil and gas industry and
the COGCC do. I believe Firestone could have been prevented, and I tried like
hell to prevent it.

I don’t want to ever come back here and tell you what needs to be done
as far as moral and ethical obligations to the people and environment of
Boulder County. You know what to do to
protect the people and we are all counting on you to be as courageous as us.
Even if you battle the odds and lose, we will still support you for your courage. The
best option is to never allow fossil fuel extraction into Boulder County and we
are counting on you to protect us.

We are smarter than a fossil fuel and ‘We Are the Energy of Change.’

Shane Davis

May 1, 2017

Boulder County

Feel free to email the Boulder County Commissioners your thoughts or simply cut and paste the above information.

ADDITIONALLY: In this
anti-fracking/civil-right movement, or any other movement, I do not condone acts of violence, rhetoric
or any action that is not peaceful and safe. Any person who speaks of acts of
violence or conducts such acts, are not an associate of mine and should be held
accountable for their actions under the system of fair and just law.

FRACTIVIST

An organized resistance against the harmful toxic extraction industry for the common good of environmental and human safety.

I build, organize and educate communities to become aware of the harmful impacts from oil and gas extraction. I supply factual, unredacted official data to public and private organizations, Universities, elected officials and scientists to use in-part, or in whole, to better understand the various ways the oil and gas industry and the State of Colorado have failed to prevent adverse impacts to the environment and the citizens.

Climate change was yesterday. We are now in a climate crisis.

We need 'Healthy Energy' not another dirty fossil fuel. If the solution is not healthy, we don't want it!

We are smarter than a fossil fuel.

Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Data and Failures

ü43% of all operator spills result in groundwater contamination in Weld County - 17.5% statewide.

ü2003-2012 Weld County, CO - 1.7 million gallons of produced water and oil never recovered from the ground after operator spills. It's still in the environment.

ü2.4 billion square feet of surface has been contaminated by 1,000 O&G surface spills. Study:1,000 spills in Weld County, CO

üLaramie-Fox Hills Aquifer was contaminated with toluene and thermogenic gas by an O&G operation in 2009 - Weld County, CO

üColorado has 129,073 Completed O&G facilities. ~50,000 are active and ~79,000 are inactive.

üEarly statistics show that ~55% of all abandoned wells are being re-entered/re-drilled.

üColorado has over 10,000 reported industrial waste spills on record.

üThere have been over 8,000 oil and gas related public complaints filed with the COGCC.

üThe burden of expense has been shifted to the local emergency response departments to battle any fires or mishaps. This expense has been shifted by the oil and gas industry to citizen tax payers, meaning 'you.'

üThere have been over 5,000 'Notice of Alleged Violations' filed by the COGCC.